I Knew You Were Trouble
}} "I Knew You Were Trouble" is the fourth track recorded by Taylor Swift from her fourth studio album, ''Red''. It was released on October 9, 2012, in the United States by Big Machine Records as the third promotional single from the album. Later on, "I Knew You Were Trouble" was released as the third single from Red on November 27, 2012, in the United States. It was released as the second single from the album in the United Kingdom on December 10, 2012. The song was written by Swift herself and co-written and produced by Max Martin and Shellback. "I Knew You Were Trouble" received generally positive reviews from music critics, who commended its mainstream appeal yet noted Swift's experimentation with dubstep as relatively limited. Due to strong digital sales, the song debuted at number three on the Billboard Hot 100, selling more than 416,000 copies within its first week, making it Swift's fourteenth entry in the top ten. It also charted in Australia, Canada, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. Background and composition When Swift previewed the song on Good Morning America on October 8, 2012, she said that it was "one of her favorite songs on the album because it sounds just as chaotic as the feeling was when I wrote it. The song is about being frustrated with yourself because here you are heart-broken and you knew when you first saw that person you saw all these red flags and you just went for it anyway, so shame on me." Initially the media had speculated the song to be about her ex-boyfriend, singer John Mayer, in lieu of her previous song "Dear John" from her third studio album, Speak Now (2010). The song was released to mainstream radio in the US as the third single from the album Red, on November 27, 2012, while in the UK it was released as the second single from the album on December 10, 2012. A CD single was released on December 13, 2012 along side with the music video to Swift's official store and Amazon.com. The CD single was individually numbered and was sold by itself or in a package with t-shirt, a Red drawstring backpack, and a spiral notebook. Critical reception The song received generally positive reviews from critics, who complimented its mainstream appeal though many noted Swift's experimentation with dubstep was relatively limited. The New York Times critic Jon Caramanica praised the song, calling it "one of the year's great pop songs" and noting that the dubstep element "arrives halfway through like a wrecking ball, changing the course not just of the song but also of Ms. Swift's career." Spin compared the song positively to lead single "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together", calling it "peppy, uber-catchy pop" and "a far cry from traditional country." The article also commented that "yes, 'Trouble' shows some wub... But as dubstep breakdowns have increasingly become just another feature of the ever-changing pop landscape, like Auto-Tune or 2 Chainz guest spots, what emerges here is merely another sharply crafted Swift kiss-off, in post-David Guetta dance-pop clothing." Ray Rahman of Entertainment Weekly commented in a short review that I Knew You Were Trouble "has the same kind of defiant pop-radio oomph that made her fourth album’s other big breakup banger, 'We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,' a number one." MTV.com described the track as "chaotic" commenting on how "the song touches on all genres of music, with moments of straight-up Top 40 pop, country and even dance, with its grinding effects, especially on the bumping chorus." The review echoes one of Swift's own comments about the song; during the GMA preview she stated: "It’s a song that’s one of my favorite songs on the album because it sounds just as chaotic as the feeling was when I wrote it." Idolator was conflicted but hopeful about the departure from Swift's typical sound, remarking that "the hook isn’t quite as immediate as 'We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,' but Martin’s stamp is still all over 'Trouble,' from the bright, sparkly instrumentation to the keen, radio-friendly melody. There might be a little part of us that misses Swift’s very personal and idiosyncratic songcraft, but it’s already clear that it’s elsewhere on the album — and the introduction of these all-star producers into the mix is giving Swift a chance to show that she’s way more versatile than just a girl with a guitar." Chart performance The song debuted at number three on Billboard Hot 100 with 416,000 copies sold in its first week, Swift's second largest first week singles sales. It became Swift's 14th top 10 hit and her 11th song to debut inside the top 10.18 With sales of 416,000 from "I Knew You Were Trouble", Taylor Swift became the first artist in digital history to have two songs that debuted with sales of 400,000 or more copies. It eventually peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 being blocked by Locked Out Of Heaven By Bruno Mars. It also hit #1 on the Billboard Pop Songs Chart and stayed #1 for 7 weeks total, it also got to #1 on the Billboard Adult Pop Songs Chart where it stayed for 1 week and it was a top 5 hit on the Adult Contemporary Chart peaking at #5. Awards and nominations "I Knew You Were Trouble" received five awards from nine nominations. Music video The music video began filming on November 18, 2012, in Los Angeles, California. Two days later, pictures from the set surfaced online showing Swift with a more rocker look and pink tipped hair. The video (directed by Anthony Mandler) premiered on December 13, 2012 on MTV as part of the channel's week long celebration for the singer's birthday.Taylor's love interest in the video is played by Reeve Carney who starred in Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark as Peter Parker/Spider-Man. A twenty-five second preview was released prior to the video's released on the same day to MTV.com. The video was compared to "Ride" by Lana Del Rey, which also was directed by Mandler and had a "confessional voice over". Rolling Stone magazine highlighted the similarities between the music video and the music video for the Rihanna single "We Found Love". Hidden message Hidden message: When you saw me dancing. Lyrics Once upon a time, a few mistakes ago I was in your sights, you got me alone You found me, you found me, you found me I guess you didn't care and I guess I liked that And I when I fell hard, you took a step back Without me, without me, without me And he's long gone when he's next to me And I realize the blame is on me 'cause I knew you were trouble when you walked in So shame on me now Flew me to places I’d never been till you put me down, oh I knew you were trouble when you walked in So shame on me now Flew me to places I’d never been Now I’m lying on the cold hard ground Oh oh trouble, trouble, trouble Oh oh trouble, trouble, trouble No apologies, he'll never see you cry Pretends he doesn't know that he's the reason why You're drowning, you’re drowning, you’re drowning Now I heard you've moved on from whispers on the street A new notch in your belt is all I’ll ever be And now I see, now I see, now I see He was long gone when he met me And I realize the joke is on me, hey! I knew you were trouble when you walked in So shame on me now Flew me to places I’d never been till you put me down, oh I knew you were trouble when you walked in So shame on me now Flew me to places I’d never been Now I’m lying on the cold hard ground Oh oh trouble, trouble, trouble Oh oh trouble, trouble, trouble And the saddest fear Comes creeping in That you never loved me Or her, or anyone, or anything, yeah I knew you were trouble when you walked in So shame on me now Flew me to places I’d never been till you put me down, oh I knew you were trouble when you walked in So shame on me now Flew me to places I’d never been Now I’m lying on the cold hard ground Oh oh trouble, trouble, trouble Oh oh trouble, trouble, trouble I knew you were trouble when you walked in Trouble, trouble, trouble I knew you were trouble when you walked in Trouble, trouble, trouble Live performances Swift first performed the song on November 18, 2012, at the 40th American Music Awards, on November 25, 2012, at the Australian TV program Today, and on November 29, 2012, at the ARIA Music Awards 2012. Cover versions * Singer Michelle Chamuel covered this song on season 4 of The Voice. The song, which earned Chamuel praise, hit the top 10 on iTunes, peaking at number 4. * The pop duo Alex & Sierra did a big band version of the song for Big Band night on the November 27, 2013 episode of The X Factor. Category:Red songs Category:Red singles Category:Songs written by Taylor Swift Category:Songs written by Max Martin Category:Songs written by Shellback (producer) Category:Songs produced by Max Martin Category:Songs produced by Shellback (producer) Category:2012 singles